Vivek Sankaran

BOISE, Idaho — Albertsons Cos. announced last month that Vivek Sankaran, chief executive officer of PepsiCo Foods, North America, has been named the retailer’s new president and CEO, effective April 25.

Jim Donald, currently the company’s president and CEO, will continue as co-chairman of the board, while Leonard Laufer will serve as the other co-chairman. Albertsons Cos.’ longtime leader, Robert Miller, has been named chairman emeritus and will continue to serve as a member of the board.

“I’m looking forward to the continued progress of the company under the seasoned leadership of Vivek,” said Donald. “We continue to be well positioned to serve the evolving needs of today’s customer, where, how and when they choose to shop with us.

“Vivek brings a rare blend of CPG, retail, manufacturing, logistics, technology and research and development to Albertsons Cos., all of which are key components to being a successful retailer in an omnichannel-driven environment. Moreover, he has the keen understanding that the front line is directly linked to the bottom line, and I’m confident he will inspire and engage our 270,000 associates across our stores, support offices, manufacturing facilities and distribution centers.”

“It is a great privilege to join a company that has such deep roots in American retail,” commented Sankaran. “Our stores are integral to the lives of millions of customers each week. I’m excited to build on the legacies of past CEOs Bob Miller and Jim Donald, who both laid a solid foundation for success, and look forward to working with our associates to realize the opportunities and navigate the challenges in our evolving industry.”

For his part, Miller commented: “I’ve known Vivek for many years. He has always impressed me, not only with his exceptional work at Frito-Lay in managing the many facets of a multibillion-dollar food business, but also with his ability to work with and develop people.

“I couldn’t be happier to leave Albertsons Cos. in Vivek’s hands.”

Sankaran was named CEO of PepsiCo Foods North America in December. Prior to that, he served as the company’s president and chief operating officer. He also led PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay division to industry-leading growth by remaining focused on innovation, technology and execution. Over his 10-year career at PepsiCo, Sankaran also served as the chief commercial officer at PepsiCo North America, chief customer officer of Frito-Lay, and senior vice president of strategy at PepsiCo.

Laufer, who was appointed to the Albertsons Cos. board of directors in October, is a senior managing director and head of transformation and technology at Cerberus Capital Management. In this capacity, he leads Cerberus Technology Solutions, a subsidiary of Cerberus focused exclusively on leveraging emerging technology, data and advanced analytics to drive business transformations. Prior to joining Cerberus, Laufer was the head of JPMorgan Intelligent Solutions, a unit of JPMorgan Chase & Co.